Debate #2
The second debate in our 21st congressional district race is now available. I suggest that you right-click on the following link and "Save Target As ..." so it will download to your computer and viewing will then be smoother:
Redlich - McNulty Debate for League of Women Voters in Schenectady
Listen to McNulty's closing statement at the end. I have referred to his views as socialist at times during the campaign. In his closing he reacts and proudly proclaims his socialist vision for America. As I say in the debate I know that socialism is a loaded word, but think about what he is saying. It is plain socialist thinking.
Thanks again to SACC-TV for taping this and to Todd Wilson of SACC-TV for encoding it digitally.
Redlich - McNulty Debate for League of Women Voters in Schenectady
Listen to McNulty's closing statement at the end. I have referred to his views as socialist at times during the campaign. In his closing he reacts and proudly proclaims his socialist vision for America. As I say in the debate I know that socialism is a loaded word, but think about what he is saying. It is plain socialist thinking.
Thanks again to SACC-TV for taping this and to Todd Wilson of SACC-TV for encoding it digitally.
posted by Albany Lawyer at 11:55 PM
3 Comments:
If a Libertarian called an opponent a socialist the cries from the Liberty Reform Caucas would be shrill.
More gas tax ? Come on Warren, let the free market ride. Alternate means will arise without undo influence. The idea that other spending and taxes should be addressed is paramount, however is correct.
This was a short debate. Haven't heard another candidate within 400 miles calling for an end to the ridiculous drug war. You oughtta be able to come home and smoke some weed and not be a criminal. We glorify beer and alcohol in advertisement and then wonder why the accompanying violence and reckless behavior need so many programs.
The healthcare socialist want to reward bad behavior. Two generations who ate fried food and smoked will be rewarded with free pills. We have no money, we owe some repsonsibility to these poor children in the queue.
More gas tax is not the answer. For too long energy taxes and has been a great milk cow for the federal and state governments. They don't want to endanger their revenue source, so they regulate, tax and subsidize to the greatest benefit of the politicians and their friends.
Eric is right. “alternate means will arise without undo influence.” if the industry is free of politics and has to innovate and survive solely on the demands of the consumer.
Increasing gas taxes will only harm consumers and industries dependent on petroleum products. Increasing taxes is just an excuse to grow big government bigger. Take a closer look at those socialist countries with the high gas taxes.
Healthcare socialism will not give us better healthcare or cheaper healthcare, just more taxes and more deficits than the semi-socialist system that we have now. The US had a perfectly good healthcare system before the LBJ Great Society programs, healthcare as well as health insurance. was competitive, innovative and inexpensive. The needy weren’t dying in the streets, there were free market mechanisms, charity hospitals and free clinics to handle the task, not coercive wealth redistribution gimmicks.
Eric and Ray disagree with me on gas taxes. As with most people who hear my position on this, they miss the rest of the story. I don't call for higher gas taxes and that's it. I call for higher gas taxes, OFFSET by lowering other taxes so the average person pays the same. The point is not to create more revenue but to change where it comes from.
I agree with both that the best answer is to dramatically reduce spending so there will be much less taxes overall. But within a world where there are taxes, we have to choose which taxes are the best way.
Taxing wages discourages people from working. While most studies show this has a small effect, it's still a bad effect. Taxing investment (dividend and capital gains) discourages investment - also bad. Taxing gasoline discourages consumption of gasoline. For many people that's a good thing.
Gas tax and other taxes on pollution are the best way to reduce pollution, far better than command-and-control regulation. The economic argument for such taxes date back to Professor A.C. Pigou in the 1920s, if not further back.
Post a Comment
<< Home